Real goals, not Resolutions

There are plenty of difficult obstacles in your path. DO NOT allow yourself to become one of them.

I had time this weekend to sit in the gym after everyone had gone and really reflect on how far the gym has come in such a short period of time. We have grown from two guys with an idea of having a true performance gym to having 30 members, putting on a very successful competition, having a blog that is actually read, and now having a performance team with members ambitious enough to try and get to USPA Nationals.

To say that this is a coaches dream would be an understatement

The members and athletes at PHP create a sort of atmosphere in which one cannot fail. They create an atmosphere that is enjoyable to lift in. They create a sense of home away from home, so that even if you have never lifted before, you can come and enjoy some barbell time. This was our dream gym, it has come to fruition, and continues to grow. Now, it goes without saying that we owe a lot of this to our members and athletes, the people that put trust in us as coaches to help them get to the goals they have set before themselves.

So to all of our members, athletes, families, and frequent drop-ins–

Thank you for your continued support and making 2015 an amazing year to start a gym!

Now on to a topic for today– Goals

I might shatter some minds here, but if your new years resolutions goal is to try and look like -insert model with an inspirational quote in front of her/him off of google image,Instagram,pinterest, etc..- then you are probably not going to be successful in your goals this year.

I hate to be a downer, but here is the deal:

That girl or guy has spent more than a year to get to where they are, sacrificed a lot more than just making a small verbal commitment to their self, and has put everything they have into looking like that. So you can see where it might be a little insulting to that person to say that you want/can have everything that they have worked so hard for in less than a years time span…

Now I don’t mean to tell you to shoot short of the moon, but let’s try and make our goals achievable and set up a solid game plan for you to achieve said goals. But for the love of everything good in this world please do not do the following:

1. Do a 4-12 week diet, nutrition challenge, cleanse, etc..
   1. Nutrition is not something you can do for a short period of time and expect long term results.
   2. This will actually do more harm than good to your body,metabolism, and goals in the long run.
2. Tell me that you want to lose the fat before gaining muscle
   1. Fat tissue and muscle tissue are different types of tissue, so they cannot turn into each other.
   2. We can actually design a program that will allow you to lose fat while gaining strength and muscle which allows you to get to your goal in a realistic time frame and not spend 8 weeks crash dieting and then realizing that you have made no headway toward your goals.
3. Jump in on some free online training program
   1. Good programs cost money (unless you are looking toward something like Wendler, mash elite, or catalyst). If you are a beginner in strength training, I would always suggest finding a gym/coach/trainer to make sure that you are getting a solid foundation on the basic lifts with in-person instruction.
   2. The person they show on the cover of the program is similar to what we talked about above, they are fitness models, they do far more than what you program entails and have access to some of the leading experts in the fitness industry, do not set yourself up for failure by training to attain that level for free.

Now that I have been a real debbie downer, let me give you some advice on how to actually take this year by the horns and catch that proverbial white whale (I realize it sounds like I made some mythological beast that looks like a whale with horns, but we are going to just roll with it):

1. Pick something to train for and set performance goals
   1. This does a couple of things:
      1. It gives you a hobby, something outside your 9-5 that you are passionate about and will enjoy doing
      2. It takes our minds off of all the negative body image/shaming that riddles our current society and focuses on things like increasing weights lifted or decreasing mile times etc..
2. Find a group of people with a “cannot fail” attitude
   1. If you are new to this whole training (not exercising) game then let me let you in on a little secret:
      1. Everyday is not going to be an awesome training session
      2. You will not PR everyday
      3. Some days you will ask yourself “Why do I even bother”
   2. This is when your atmosphere and the people around you really matter. It is those days that you know you are doing something your care about, because if it was easy and you didn’t care, then you would never feel this way.
   3. This is the reason that PHP has such strong competitors, because they lift each other up even when they miss lifts they know they should hit.
3. Have fun with what you are doing and know that this is a life changing process, not a 6 week joy ride
   1. This changing process will be an emotional and physically struggle.
   2. You will be sore, tired, beat-up, exhausted, etc…
   3. You might cry, have bad nutrition days, feel hopeless, etc…
   4. BUT KNOW:
      1. There will always be another training session
      2. You will recover and feel better
      3. In the long run, you will be a better person from going through these struggles
      4. This is something that you truly earn, the time you put in directly correlates to what you get out in the end.

All this is to say:

Don’t just make resolutions, because those die with the coming of a New Year. Make real, set in stone (or written on a board or wall) goals. Goals that you do anything to achieve, Goals that don’t stop because it is hard or it cost a little money, or that you just can’t make time for. Set these goals, find a supportive group of athletes/people that will make them happen, and get off your ass and get to it.

Remember, no one can make you do these things, the desire has to already be there, and then and only then can we help pull it out and become a reality!

If you are interested in starting something this year but are not sure how email us at purehealthperformance918@gmail.com or PM us on our Facebook and we will get you some information on how to start that journey!